Federal Inland Revenue Service, the Ministry of Works, and the Central Bank of Nigeria will convene to discuss the N2.59 trillion tax credit scheme intended for the nation’s road development and repair projects.
According to The Times, the FIRS Chairman, Zacheus Adedeji, also voiced his severe displeasure of the N2.59 trillion tax credit program that was started during the former President Muhammadu Buhari’s government. This program, which was designed to make building roads throughout Nigeria easier, is currently being examined.
The criticism is made in light of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited’s justification for a $3.3 billion loan that was obtained through the Central Bank of Nigeria in order to support the value of Naira in international exchange markets.
The tax credit scheme’s workings were looked into in a meeting with the Senate Committee on Finance, which is composed of Adedeji and the chief financial officer of NNPCL, Umoru Ajiya.
Senator Sani Musa (APC, Niger East) spearheaded this investigation to find out if the plan will be effective in fixing the nation’s decaying federal road system.
Ajiya claims that the NNPCL has rehabilitated roads in each of Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones for roughly N664 billion.
Additionally, the NNPCL has recognized that the $3.3 billion loan facility, of which roughly $2.2 billion has already been secured and the remaining $1.05 billion is anticipated before the end of the month, will aid CBN’s efforts to reduce volatility in the foreign exchange market.
Adedeji, on the other hand, “contends that the tax credit program is “unlawful” and pushes for its dissolution, stressing that the FIRS should only cover tax collection and remittance rather than using presidential directives to pay road improvements.”
Adedeji went on to critique the tax credit scheme’s operating framework, arguing that “the Ministry of Works should be solely responsible for awarding and paying contracts for road construction. He announced that FIRS, CBN, and the Ministry of Works would be meeting soon to review the scheme’s development and refocus efforts in a more useful way,” he stated
Senator Musa repeated Adedeji’s worries, saying that “the 1999 constitution’s provisions about the consolidated revenue pool might be violated by NNPCL and FIRS using tax credits for road improvements. The result of the upcoming conference between the three agencies is eagerly awaited and could shape future policies and amend past mistakes.
